THINK INK
Tattooing is a ubiquitous art form these days, and as Brightonians we’re fortunate in having some of its best exponents at Into You, stars of our last SOURCE Virgins feature. These conventions are more than just beefy blokes wandering about with no shirts on, here you can see some of the scene’s leading lights pushing ink before your very eyes at the Concorde 2 on Sunday 1st.
BATTLE OF THE BLANDS
While we’re naturally pleased that a Brighton band has emerged as the winner of the Global Battle Of The Bands Challenge, walking away with an incredible $100,000 prize, we were a bit surprised to see it was won by Floors And Walls. They might well be the best new band in their street but would come a bit lower down in our global list, frankly.
DON’T KOOK BACK IN ANGER
Former Kooks bassist Max Rafferty has unveiled his new outfit The Third Man with some well received early gigs. He’s also hitting back at reports that his departure was down to some Drugs Hell. Not the case, apparently. It was just a load of bickering, but apparently everyone’s friends again now. Aah…
LONGER LOOP
Following the success of last year’s Victoria Gardens electro extravaganza, 2009 sees the Loop Festival spreading its wings over two days. A month earlier this time, it takes place on the weekend of July 11th and 12th, with the Sunday promising a distinctly different vibe. Watch this space for line-up confirmations.
SOURCE LEADS, MORRISSEY FOLLOWS
Well it took him a little while, but our patronage of Doll And The Kicks (cover stars of our student guide, ooh, 18 months ago) has filtered back to the Queen Is Dead quiff king himself. Morrissey’s 2009 tour will feature the band as main support throughout the UK and Europe over spring and summer. So, look out for Qemists remixes of his next single then. Or possibly not.
BEACHDOWN UP AGAIN
We’ve got some local line-up updates for the second Beachdown Festival in August – many of whom were written about first right here in these very pages. Gloria Cyscles, Mean Poppa Lean, Drookit Dogs, Sweet Sweet Lies, The Perils and Los Albertos are all top notch local draws, and any festival who supports their like as much as we try to are is fine by SOURCE.
REAL HORRORSHOWS
Caroline of Brunswick (the pub, not some random crone) is hosting a two-month celebration of horror cinema with some rare and uncompromising shockers on Wednesday and Thursday nights throughout Febryary and March. Many will have been selected by horror luminaries who will be on hand the personally introduce their choices. All films start at 8pm, are 100% uncut and it’s all free.
CRAFTY CUTS
What do you mean, it’s an old lady thing? Hobbycrafts and sewing are essential recession beaters as we take up the World War II adage of ‘make do and mend’. If you want to save some dough by stitching up some unique clobber, pop along to the Brighton Centre from Frtiday 6th to Sunday 8th for Creative Stitches &Hobbycrafts, with workshops, demonstrations and advice.
WHAT’S UP DOC?
If you like nothing more than poking a camcorder into people’s faces as they go about their business, then you could be a documentary maker. But how do you do it without getting pujnched in the face? Well SEE Festival is here to help. Dedicated to all things documentary, this weekend event beginning Saturday 21st at UMI Hotel features screenings, seminars and special events with the industry’s leading lights, including folk from the BBC and Channel 4.
LOVE PLUS ONE
Here’s a new way of getting a bloke or bird on board in time for Valentines Day – One Plus One Social, at Ohso Social funnily enough on Thursday 12th, works like this. You go along with a friend of the opposite sex, they steer you clear of munters and you tell them someone’s eyeing them up, and everyone has a lovely old time chatting each other up. The organisers describe it as a ‘social bring and buy sale’. Open to lovelorns aged 24-39, the tenner per pair you pay to get in gets you an inhibition-shrugging glass of bubbly each as well.
PIP PIP! THE PIPETTES ARE COMING
After featuring the lovely Rose ElinorDougal in our last issue, we got to wondering where the rest of her ex polka-dotted cohorts were at. Well, the news from Pipette Central is that they’re putting the finishing bits to a new album with legendary producer Martin Rushent at the helm. He did Dare by the Human League as well as Altered Images and Visage, and apparently wants them to sound like ‘the millennium Abba’, which has us on tenterhooks. More news as we get it…
QUEER? STEER HERE AND CHEER.
The Redroaster Coffee House on James Street is hosting the latest showcase of poetic talent from the gay community with their Queer Poets Night. Ostensibly a launch celebration of Maria Jastrz?bska’s new poetry collection, I’ll Be Back Before You Know It, the evening will also feature poetry and songs from celebrated visiting Northern poet SeniSeneviratne as well as readings from the Queer Writing South anthology Whoosh!
NOON AT 8PM
Sunday 8th sees Komedia playing host to the really rather great writer Jeff Noon, of Vurt, Pollen and Automated Alice fame, where he’s headlining a line-up of five diverse short stories. It’s part of Short Fuse, their monthly cabaret-style fiction showcase which intersperses live readings with music and a bar between readings.
